Despite the frigid temperatures in the North Korean city of Samjiyon, construction continues on a tourist resort in the area. That has resulted in multiple cases of frostbite among workers assigned to the project.
“The temperature in Samjiyon and around Mount Paektu remains close to -30 degrees Celsius (-22 degrees Fahrenheit). Despite this harsh weather, work is proceeding on the construction of the tourist resort. Since there aren’t enough winter gloves and boots to go around, many labor brigade members are suffering from frostbite,” a source in Ryanggang province told Daily NK recently.
According to the source, construction crews working on the Samjiyon Tourist Resort were ordered by the Central Committee not to delay work despite the winter weather after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attended the opening ceremony of several hotels in the city last December.
“The winter cold is no reason to slow down construction. The work must go ahead without delay,” the orders reportedly said.
So while the cold has not stopped construction work, the labor brigades assigned to the job have not been supplied nearly enough cold-weather gear, and what they have received is of poor quality. The result is that many workers are suffering from frostbite.
Shoddy gear, minimal medical treatment
“Labor brigade members at the worksites are provided with gear collected around the country, but that gear is so shoddy that workers’ fingers often poke out of holes in the gloves. Given the shortage of winter boots, construction workers sometimes end up wearing shoes intended for summer weather,” the source said.
The source said that since the labor brigades have neither doctors on staff nor drugs to dispense, workers who come down with frostbite on the job can hardly expect decent medical treatment.
“The only ‘treatment’ workers are given is a little time off. Even in bad cases of frostbite, workers aren’t taken off the job until managers have requested a replacement—and that’s the best outcome,” the source said.
These conditions are provoking more complaints from labor brigade members. In particular, workers are infuriated by the regime’s continuing emphasis on a “speed battle” in the construction project as it pushes to turn Samjiyon into a leading tourist destination.
“If they want a ‘speed battle’ from us, surely they ought to give us better food and equipment,” one worker grumbled.
“The biggest frustration for workers in the labor brigades is that the authorities keep pushing to speed up construction without providing them with decent working and living conditions. At this rate, they’re certain to end up with shoddy work, which, in the long term, could impede the very tourism projects the state envisions,” the source commented.
On a related subject, residents of Ryanggang province are apparently skeptical of the Samjiyon Tourist Resort that is being built. Even when the resort is finished, locals are unlikely to be allowed inside. Since North Korea is primarily targeting foreign tourists, access for locals is expected to be extremely limited.
“Looking at the resorts that the state has built, locals typically visit in group outings arranged by social organizations, and that’s likely to happen at the Samjiyon Tourist Resort as well. Even those outings would be very expensive when room and board are accounted for. People might be willing to splurge on a trip to Pyongyang, but not to the mountains,” the source said.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: dailynk.com
